


Sweet Endings

by Yumekari



Category: Free!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-18
Updated: 2013-10-18
Packaged: 2017-12-29 17:51:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1008303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yumekari/pseuds/Yumekari
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haruka and Rin have been close friends and rivals since childhood. They are two halves of the same whole, brought together by pain and adversity. It is only natural that feelings deeper than friendship would develop between them. So natural, so wonderful, it is almost like a dream come true.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sweet Endings

"I know how fun it is to swim with friends… How good it feels to swim in a relay together…" Haruka clenches his fists, willing the one in front of him to grasp the depth of his emotion."You were the one who taught me that, Rin!" He punctuates his words with desperation as he meets that red gaze. "You’re the reason that I…"

"Shut up!" Angry hands yank him forward roughly and their heads nearly smash into each other, but he only increases his volume. The words are tumbling out now; he couldn’t stop if he tried and he doesn’t _want_ to stop. Before him, Rin shakes, face stormy.

"I understand now. I found the answer! Why it is I swim! Who it is I’m swimming for!"

If he is expecting a positive response, he doesn’t get one. A fraught shout tears out of Rin as he balls his fist for a punch. Haruka grabs his arm when it flies out, but the momentum knocks them both to the ground. His breath is stolen away. No time to catch it. Rin is a heavy weight on top of him, snarling and yanking.  Desperate to get him closer. Hurt him. A thread of fear worms through Haruka. He struggles, rolling and reversing their positions, but it is a short lived victory and Rin is pinning him down again, teeth bared in a scowl like a shark about to strike. Haruka closes his eyes and bites his lip, bracing himself.

The punch never comes. Cautiously, he opens his eyes. Rin is staring to his left, and Haruka’s gaze travels to the words he had written in the sand. _For the team_. Wet droplets rain onto his cheeks and his gaze returns to Rin. What? Tears. Rin’s tears.

"Why?" Rin demands, voice quavering and thick with emotion. "Why isn’t it free?" Tears run tracks down his dirt-stained face as he meets Haruka’s blank stare pleadingly. "I want to swim with you guys," he confesses with a choked sob. "I want to swim in a relay with you guys! But it’s too late now!"

Oh. A warmth blossoms from Haruka’s chest and spreads. “No, it’s not too late,” He replies softly as he leans forward, resting his weight on his arms. He smiles. Rin hasn’t changed that much, after all. He was always a crybaby. And stubborn. “Let’s go, Rin. We want to swim with you too.” **_I_** _want to swim with you._

—-

He is jerked out of his trance when his hands slap against the slide of the pool. Haruka pulls off his swimming cap and goggles in one smooth motion. His breaths come heavily and his thoughts lag behind his movements, still lingering in the water. Makoto’s hand stretches out in front of him, and Nagisa is crying. The cries of “Haru!” “Haru-chan!” bring him back to reality and he smiles slightly as he accepts the hand, recalling relays past.

He is barely standing when a sudden weight rams into him and strong arms surround him in a bear hug. He flinches, stunned, but it’s only Rin. _I could have slipped and died_ , Haruka thinks dryly, but the thought quickly dissipates and he relaxes into the warm hold. Makoto and Nagisa jump into the hug with ecstatic cries, throwing him off balance again, but he can’t bring himself to be upset. It feels good to be standing here, surrounded by friends and…

"Haru.. You showed me the best sight I could’ve asked for!"

And Rin.

—-

It’s 11 PM on a Friday night, the air is pleasantly cool, the stars are twinkling beautifully, and Haruka is exasperated. Rin had insisted that they meet at their old elementary school, at this _specific_ hour. Why? “Just come, Haru.” And like a fool, he had come.

He passes the fence and makes his way to the cherry blossom tree in the yard, sensing that the redhead would be there. Sure enough, a figure in shadow stands broodingly beneath the sweet flowers, dim moon shining in the background. A leaf crunches under Haruka’s foot, and the figure turns as he closes the distance between them.

"Well?" Haruka prompts. Whatever is on Rin’s mind must be important, to call him out here in the middle of the night. Rin stares at him for a long moment before turning back to gaze at the blooming tree. Seconds tick away before he speaks.

"Haru, do you remember when we were kids, and I told you I was leaving for Australia?"

"Yes," Haruka replies with a frown. It ranks low on his list of favorite memories, and he wonders why Rin is bringing it up now. "You said that you were following your own dream now."

Rin continues as if he hadn’t heard. “I was excited to go. To better my swimming and get closer to my father’s goal. But one thing made me doubt myself. There was one thing that made me want to stay.” At this, Rin turns to face him, maroon eyes intensely cutting. Haruka’s mouth is suddenly dry, and he feels like a fish out of water, floundering weakly on unfamiliar land.

"What?" He croaks. His heart is beating too quickly and he is afraid of the answer, so very afraid, but at the same time he wants to hear it _terribly_ it is as if he had been waiting his whole life for this moment, this ridiculous moment at 11 PM on a Friday night, this moment.

"You, Haru." Silence. Cicadas chirp, background music to a terrible stillness. Rin’s eyes are wet at the edges and he bites his lip hesitantly before closing in. _Oh God._ He gently brushes his lips over Haruka’s before pulling away, hair covering his face like a shield. _Oh God._ His mind is a blank and Haruka falters before brushing the hair out of Rin’s eyes and tentatively  returning the gesture.

Warm tranquility pools over the flood of panic and settles into serene puddles. It feels so _right_ , so natural. Everything he wanted, everything he wants. He is a captive fish being released into the ocean, a dolphin leaping and twirling, and Haruka wouldn’t mind if they never moved from the spot.

—-

His eyes flutter open.

"A dream?" Haruka mutters, squinting against the bright sunlight as he pushes himself into a sitting position, grass tickling his arms. The light does nothing to warm the chill in the air. Yawning, he rubs the sleep from his eyes. His gaze settles on the bouquet of flowers next to him, and any lingering vestige of sleepy joy slips away like water through his fingers.

He grabs the flowers. Stray petals float down as he stands, holding the bouquet against his chest.  He huffs as he climbs up the steep hill, coming to rest under a tall cherry blossom tree.

"Romantic, right?" Haruka murmurs as he stoops, resting the flowers in front of cold gray stone. He chews on his lip, the sudden urge to cry flooding him as he stares at the name engraved in the headstone. There is a monster squeezing his chest and it feels like his heart is going to burst from the strain.

"Why did you do it?" He whispers. "We would have helped you. _I_ would have helped you.” He takes a shaky breath. “Gou misses you. Nagisa cries every day. Rei and Makoto are trying to keep everyone from just… falling apart.” Haruka pauses, vision blurring as the words tumble out of him. “I love you, you know. I always did. I should have told you earlier.” There is no response. Of course. Only the cold wind is there, stealing away the sound of his sobs.


End file.
